The Latest Marvel Event

My opinion of Marvel's upcoming event seems to change on a daily, if not hourly, basis. A few (as in quite a few) random and rambling thoughts:

• Yes, it is too early to judge it. I haven't read it (and probably won't anyways) so judging a story before it's done is rather unfair and shows some closed mindedness.
• However, it's yet another "event". I was definitely hit with "event fatigue" or whatever you wanted to call it, I was just tired of getting hit with where everyone's involved and everything is a tie in.
• Having said that, if you were looking to get kids or some non-comic readers excited about an event it seems logical to be able to say "It's Avengers vs X-Men". It's really a "nuff said" event as you might be mildly curious about what causes it but at the end of the day a lot of people just want to see these guys slug it out, it's just really simple and sell-able to a wide audience. Superhero comics have always had that "who would win between" element to them, as a Hulk reader I've had more than my fair share of books where it was "Hulk vs someone". Yeah, we've seen fights like this before (Secret Wars or so many others) and we'll see it again. It's just one of those things you have to expect with superhero comics. If you aren't in to them just wait, it's not like the next 10 years of Marvel comics will be this story. Next year it'll be something else entirely.
• Let's face it, no matter how much you love a character/writer/company/whatever they will inevitably write something (or in the character's case something will be written with them in it) that just doesn't appeal to you. It's the old "You can't please everybody all the time" thing. Some stories may be more miss than hit but that's life and that's art.
• "It's just comics." I've often hated that expression as I see it at belittling to the medium but I have to admit, life will go on and so will the characters/stories. We'll have the comic enthusiasts going around in stereotypical fashion saying "worst idea ever" (yes, I have been one of them and will be again and again) and there's nothing wrong with having that opinion but life is full of disappointments. And no matter what you think of it there will be those who think it's better than sliced bread. Who's right? I say that's a trick question. It's art. It's comics. It's opinions.
• So let's go negative. So let's be critical of the books before they come out. Let's play into that stereotype. Does it help the medium? I think having a calm, rational discussion of possible "event fatigue" or of the story (after it's out) can be helpful but I don't think we're ever going to see that on the Internet. Once you go to absolutes or judging without reading I think you are turning off potential readers who would help the industry as a whole.
• That reminds me of comic clerks who are critical of certain books and those who buy them. I've had clerks mock me, insulting me for reading Hulk comics, a "one-dimensional character" in their opinion. Really? Is this how you're trying to sell your merchandise? By all means, you have every right to your opinion but don't be so dismissive of others.
• Will I buy these books? I'm 99% certain I won't. Having the Hulk playing a part does get my attention and I may give in and check out an issue or two if he's front and center. And will I be critical of another "event" or for some other reason? Perhaps. Will I admit that my opinion is my own and doesn't necessarily reflect the true quality of the story (especially because, again, I probably won't even read it) and everyone else may disagree with me? Absolutely.
• So will it be good? Will it be a good story? Will it sell? Will it get new readers in or send old readers out the door? Only time and history will tell I suppose, and even then I may disagree with that.
• Will life go on? I sure hope so. It's just comics after all.

It's been a while...

I guess I just haven't had much to blog about lately. Plus, does anyone even blog any more? I won't go in to the personal/work stuff, it's all rather depressing. So let's stick to comics and other fun stuff.

With all the stuff going on it's been rather tough to find time for the Bluenoser so I'm down to one page per week but I'm keeping up with that at least. Here's a preview of this week's page:

As you can see I still have a ways to go on this page. My original plan for this book was to keep it going with short (5-6 page) stories but then I decided to do a "major" story once I got close to the 100th page so it's been about getting stories out that build to that one. Okay, that may not have made as much sense as it did in my head. Sorry, I'm rather tired at the moment. I guess the "move" to its own page was a little unnecessary as well as DrunkDuck has been somewhat stable and what few readers I have seem to stick to there. But oh well, it's good to have a mirror up just in case.

In terms of what I've been reading lately, I just finished the Walking Dead: Rise of the Governor. I was actually rather disappointed in it. Perhaps it's just my dislike of the Governor or something else (which I don't want to say/spoil) but I just didn't enjoy it as much as the comic. I've also finished off some comics like Kill Shakespeare volume 2 (really interesting idea and well executed), Walking Dead volume 15 (despite parts of this story seeming to drag on I'm still hooked on it for some reason), and Sweet Tooth volume 3 (while reading this book I wasn't sure I'd buy volume 4 but by the time I got to the end I was eager to see what happens next). I've also started reading "Hark! AVagrant" and I'll probably be starting Jack of Fables volume 9 shortly. I have a lot of books on my "to be read" pile so I'm hoping to tackle some during the holiday week (between Christmas and New Year's).

So back to the drawing board (or the Cintiq sitting on my dining room table at least).

It's that time of year

Yes, it's that time of year. And no, I'm not talking about Christmas. It's the time of year when people start listing the top books of the year. Okay, maybe it's a bit early but Publishers Weekly has already got the ball rolling. Of those books I've read Habibi and most of Zahra's Paradise. I've added some of the others to my "might pick up" pile. And that's how I often work. Obviously I pick up some books throughout the year but I really enjoy seeing the "best of" lists and finding new treasures I might have overlooked or didn't hear of throughout the year. So if you see any such lists that you think I may have missed or have your own suggestions let me know. Webcomic suggestions are of course welcome as well.

I'll probably be doing up my own list of this year's highlights but it won't be until December.

Another check in

I'm really falling behind on the whole blogging thing aren't I. But then again, does anyone really blog anymore? :)

So what's new? That crap I mentioned in my last post that's been going on in my life continues. In some ways I'd like to talk about it yet it just doesn't feel right to ramble on about these things in a blog post. So instead I'll ramble about comics.

It looks like the big companies are moving more and more towards the digital world. DC has already gone same day and Marvel is moving more and more of their books to that. Heck, one smaller company dropped monthlies entirely (selling digital and eventual print collections). I still haven't fully went that way in terms of reading though. I don't buy monthlies but I wait for the TPBs. A few reasons:
- Price. As much as I want to support the creators of these books I just can't see paying the same price to read it digitally (which should be cheaper to produce/distribute and results in me not actually owning anything) as I would to own a physical copy.
- Reading experience. This one is slightly on me as I don't own an iPad but even trying it on a friend's I still preferred the print versions. Part of this is that artists still draw for the printed page, using story telling techniques that don't always translate 100%.
- Decompression. I still find that when I read an individual issue of so many books that at the end I feel somewhat cheated, that there was no closure and I only got a small chunk of the story. It almost feels like I've been left mid-sentence and have to wait a month (or longer) for it to finish. Then when the next issue comes out I still don't feel that closure. I don't feel that way (as much) reading the TPBs. And if I'm waiting for the TPBs anyways (which tend to be cheaper than the individual issues and I find too long to sit in front of a computer reading) then why go digital?

But that's all just me. I also wonder about webcomics and where they fit in. With the iPad apps and various viewers coming out and such is the idea of free webcomics going to continue? Or are they just going to be that stepping stone of getting people to notice you and then dropped when you get that first paying gig. So often I see that and it makes me less interested in webcomics because I feel "Why bother getting involved in the story if the creator is actually looking to drop it for a paying gig?" Are webcomics irrelevant now that we have the iPad/iPhone/laptops with comic viewing software where we can buy stuff?

Though my view on webcomics may also be slightly tainted with the DrunkDuck things going on. WOWIO seems to have put work on it aside until they start making some money and the site could really use the work right now after the relaunch. And the annual DrunkDuck awards finalists got nominated. I'll admit, I had some hopes to maybe get recognized but I knew it was a long shot. So maybe there's a bit of sour grapes but my first reaction was "How did X get nominated in category Y?" I have to recognize it was a popularity contest and books I don't think are that great are popular. And people who read those books were quick to nominate them as much as they could (like a book being nominated in both "black and white" and "color" comic or in every genre, some people just put one book in every category) so I just have to shrug it off but that mentality of not caring does bug me. I can see why some people decided to leave but on the other hand is any site really going to be better? Leaving one site because you aren't one of the "cool kids" just doesn't seem all that productive. I think it happens on every site, there's that inner clique and if you aren't in it then you're on your own and if you are then you'll generally go no farther than that.

So anyways, back to work for me. Hope everyone's having a better day than me and that I didn't bring you down too much. :)

Checking in

Yeah, I've been pretty quiet on here lately and I guess I should apologize for that. There's a lot going on in my life that has me down and I've been trying to avoid going all negative and ranty here. I think the web already has enough of that.

So trying to stay positive by touching on a few of the books I've read lately. I'm up to date on DMZ and Scalped. Still enjoying both books (Scalped more so) but I do think knowing both books will be coming to an end does help. For some reason as much as I'm enjoying them I do feel they both need to come to some closure at some point (fairly soon). Atomic Robo volume 5 was great, as usual. Lucille by Ludovic Debeurme was pretty amazing but I didn't realize going in that this was just the first book so I guess I'll have to wait for the next one. I also had a Nathan Fillion filled weekend by re-reading the Serenity books (recently released as two hardcovers) and the Castle graphic novel (seen on last night's episode).

In terms of new books I decided to check out the first two volumes of iZombie. I wasn't sure what to expect from it and a few issues in I wasn't really blown away but by the end of the first volume I was intrigued enough to really want to read the second volume. I'm still slightly on the fence with the series but I'll be picking up volume 3 when it comes out.

I meant to read Habibi on the weekend but it got put aside for some lighter reading. It's currently on the top of my "to read" list. And at some point I plan on doing a Sandman re-read. I borrowed them through my first reading so I'm picking up the new editions that are coming out (I'm a little obsessive compulsive and I'd kind of like a consistent set and not a mix of various editions). So that plan may get put aside until they all have been re-released.

So that's it for me at the moment. And I'm open to suggestions on other books to read.

New Readers

I'm probably the last person to be bringing up DC's 52 reboot as I'm not reading them (other than Justice League) and I'm not going to be a new DC reader, I'm just not interested. But I've been reading plenty of comments on them from new and old readers and among the compliments and complaints there are a few things I'm picking out (whether they're true or not). One, the books don't seem to be all that new reader friendly. If it's not Superman or Batman then new readers have no idea who these characters are and the reboot books don't seem to be origins or introductions to the characters. They are the start of a new story but readers without the history may be feeling lost right from the start. And there doesn't seem to be any closure within the issues (with maybe a couple exceptions). This can be jarring to new comic readers who are expecting a contained story. I think they expect like a TV show or movie that there will be some sort of contained story in the issue even if it is part of an ongoing larger story.

So I think about when friends ask me about getting into comics and what to read, my first reaction is usually "well what would you be interested in reading?" Are they in to horror, westerns, sci fi, romance, or do they really want to give superhero stuff a try? And then I go to books/stories/characters I feel they can get into easily and this is usually not Marvel or DC. Unless they say "I saw Thor and really want to read Thor comics" I just don't go there. I find any character who has a story going back to the 1960's can be a little daunting. I usually go with ones where they can go into a comic shop, bookstore, or Amazon and grab a TPB or two and figure out if the story is for them. So I go with Invincible, Elephantmen, Atomic Robo, Walking Dead, Chew, Sandman, Fables,... And it's easy to direct them to volume 1. Where do you direct someone for Marvel or DC characters? The "essential" volumes? More recent TPBs? More recent "relaunches" of the character (if they have one)? I'm just never sure.

It has me thinking, would DC's reboot have been better served by having single issues or even initial TPBs that contained full stories that actually introduced the characters (either through origins or just self contained stories that at least told you who they are). Would it benefit DC (or even Marvel) to put out such books? A confined "All you need to know about Spider-Man/Thor/Captain America/Superman/Batman" comic (either single issue, TPB, or digital comic they can get from their sites. And I'm not talking those 2-3 pagers that don't really give you any actual story. Because as it is I'm still directing any potential new readers elsewhere.

But that may just be me.

Two page spreads

One thing I'm curious about is how the two page spreads (specifically those in the Justice League books by Jim Lee) look on the iPad and iPhone. It can't be that great a reading experience. I'd say two page spreads are more for the benefit of print versions. But here's the thing, they really aren't (in most cases).

Now this is just my opinion of course and there are exceptions (I seem to recall some great two page spreads in MiracleMan, Sandman, Return of the Dapper Men, etc) but I found in those exceptions they fit the story more. They gave us a large view while moving the story forward. In Justice League 1 you have a double page spread of Batman jumping out of the way of gunshots from helicopters, is that really worthy of a two page spread? In issue 2 it seems (I've only seen the unlettered preview) you have Batman and Superman squaring off in a two page spread. Yes, it shows off some pretty artwork but does it really tell the story effectively or is it just trying to cover up a lack of substance with some eye candy?

And aside from that, it keeps me wondering about making comics for print and digital yet again. The talk about going digital seems to gloss over what this means for some artists. Many artists don't look at making comics as a panel by panel thing, for them the whole page (and all its panels) fits together as a work of art. So you'll have panels blending into one another, overlapping (in art or dialogue), and other little "tricks" that require you to see the full page at once to get the full reading experience. Currently, tablets and smartphones are smaller than printed pages and often lose detail when pages are shrunk down to fit them (especially the phones). Computer monitors are usually better (though they have to be sufficiently large enough). I guess the assumption is that either artists will have to stop doing stuff that works better in print or that technology will eventually find an answer or that the majority of comic readers (especially those going to digital) won't care.

I tend to go with the last option for the most part, I don't think there's that many readers who actually care about this stuff. It's too bad in a way as I find it nice to see artists who know how to really tell the story effectively through their art but I accept that I can be in the minority and that there's a larger audience who just want their glossed over pretty pictures. I guess it's like all other forms of entertainment (TV, movies, books, etc) where what I might consider high quality doesn't always bring in the money and the audience wants their sex/violence/explosions/"reality" TV/"leave your brain at the door popcorn blockbuster"/glittery vampire with abs/whatever else sells. And who am I to say what is right or wrong for them to like/spend their money on.

Though I also know of some artists who are considering these things and being pulled in many directions. So hopefully they can find a balance or a solution and that technology continues to expand the possibilities for them.